Nick's Home!

Day 112 (4.22.10) - Nick got home today at about 10 pm. He drove 2,500 + miles and stopped at the diner to pick up 2 taylor ham, egg and cheese sandwiches to bring home. Look at how happy he is. He hasn't shaved in over 2 weeks and is still representing San Diego with his chargers shirt. But yes, he's home! The kids haven't seen him yet - tomorrow morning is going to be like Christmas!

Chez Lao

Day 111 (4.21.10) - The kids, mom and I spent the day at my brother VJ and Melissa's place in the Poconos. Melissa is the best host and we always eat good and PLENTY at their house. Here she is - always with a smile, her "you had me at merlot" apron, and a delicious plate of food ready to be served. For lunch we had salmon with a sort of walnut vinigarette sauce, broccoli rabe, asparagus and potatoes (also not pictured is steak). After this delicious lunch you better believe we also stayed for dinner too!

Dim Sum

Day 107 (4.17.10) - One of the things I was looking forward to in NJ is REAL Chinese food. After 7+ years in California I've found one good place to eat and that was about 40 minutes away from me. My brother VJ, Melissa and their kids Kaden and Iliana came to meet me and the kids for Dim Sum today. Joey was actually sleeping when we left (hence him not being in the picture) but he woke up just as we were about to eat so I went to pick him up. Lunch was delicious!

Beach Break Cafe

Day 103 (4.13.10) - Of course the pictures from our last few days in California is all food pictures. I'm sure my pictures of my first few weeks in NJ will also have food pictures. Out of all the places to eat in California the place we will miss the most is Beach Break Cafe in Oceanside. Nick and I have been going there for years and they have basically watched our family grow. We've gone there pretty much every single weekend we were home for the last 4 or 5 years. The place is a small family owned business with with great food and great service. I have a bunch of different favorite meals that I like to rotate between - pictured here is mango pecan french toast with a side of bacon. Nick gets the same thing every.single.week - the a Mexican egg torta with coffee cak. Joey usually gets the Micky Mouse pancakes.

In N Out

Day 102 (4.12.10) - There are some things you can't get in NJ and In N Out is one of them! We had a busy day today. We dropped off Nick's car to get shipped and on the way home we saw an In N Out truck pass us by. I picked some up to get our fix before we leave. If you haven't had it - you have to try it next time you're out west! Here's Nick with our 2 double doubles, fries and neapolitan shakes. After we had our burgers we started packing. Yes, that is correct, we are moving in 2 days and we JUST STARTED packing today!

Chocolate Molten Lava Cake

Day 78 (3.19.10) - We had a super fun kid-free night. Nick and I got a sitter, went to dinner at a fantastic steakhouse (this was the best meal I've had in a long time!) then met a bunch of friends (including some out of town friends we've missed) at a wine bar. 5 whole hours of kid free fun. Since we don't live near any family, we rarely get out. Here is a picture of my dessert from dinner. A delicious chocolate molten lava cake (not pictured is the French Vanilla Bean ice cream that accompanied the lava cake). I was so stuffed from dinner I could hardly move.

Oreo Shakes

Day 69 (3.10.10) - The chicken is pretty good but the Oreo Milkshakes are REALLY good. We live really close to Chick-fil-A and I can't stay away from these milkshakes. Nick is equally addicted and won't share with me any more so I had to get 2 today. It's ok though cause Joey polished off half of it!

Pizza Night

Day 43 (2.12.10) - It's Friday night and pizza night. I didn't feel like cooking so put Nick in charge of dinner....so of course he ordered a pizza. Joey seems to have the same love for pizza as his dad - look at him go.

Fried Bananas

Day 29 (1.29.10) - I took a lot of pictures today and had some really great shots. Some of downtown San Diego, some of the kids, a few other things and from a photography standpoint I had some way better pictures than this one. But, I just had to post this picture as my picture of the day because it was the highlight of my day. 20 fried bananas (fried plantains) that Nick purchased from the Filipino supermarket. By the end of the evening Nick and I ate 16 of them and basically ruined our dinner. We didn't even make the delicious dinner we had planned because we were stuffed from these bananas. They were delicious though.

Strawberries

Day 27 (1.27.10) - Every Wednesday afternoon in Carlsbad they have a farmer's market. Many Wednesday's I stop by on the way home from work to pick up some fresh produce. I love living in a place where we have such delicious locally grown fruits and veggies. I picked up some of these strawberries today.